Migrate Your Payments Platform Without Disrupting Your Business

There are good reasons to switch to a more robust payment platform: it can deliver clear benefits like better approval ratios, enhanced reporting, quicker funding, global payment acceptance and improved security. But with your business humming along, you may not have made time for the transition.

The changeover can be extremely simple if you’re not switching gateways; if you are, it’s a bigger task. By mapping out a migration project that includes plenty of testing and a solid contingency plan, the transition can happen without any impact on your business or customer satisfaction.

First, consider the following five questions to get an understanding of transition steps. Second, use
our checklist to begin creating your project plan.

1. What’s
your current setup?

The technical scope of your transition will be determined by your current setup and how you accept card payments. If you use a virtual terminal, you’ll simply receive a new merchant identification number and a link with step-by-step instructions. Within minutes, you’ll be
processing payments on the new platform.

If you have a more sophisticated e-commerce or receivables implementation that uses a third-party API – for example to handle recurring billing – moving to your new merchant services provider will be straightforward but you’ll need to loop any third parties into your project plan. You can also tap your bank’s advisory
team for support. Start by pointing your developers to a
sandbox to help them become familiar with tools available to them.

2. What are your current business needs?

Your business may have evolved since you set up your last merchant processing account. To ensure you’ll make the best use of payment innovations and reporting options currently available, consider these questions:

Could a broader array of payment options help you grow market share?

What kinds of reports and transaction information do you want to set up to support analytics and decision-making?

Do you expect volume to grow, or are you planning international expansion?

Define the optimal use case so that your new implementation will support your goals.

3. Is your housekeeping done?

If you’ve previously handled payments via an intermediary service – also known as an aggregator – you may not have had to meet some standard industry requirements, but to gain your own merchant account you need to adhere to some e-commerce best practices. Specifically, your website should disclose all your terms and conditions, such as privacy, shipping, returns, cancellations and refund policies. Those policies will protect you in the long run, especially when it comes to disputing chargebacks. Your merchant services advisor will also
give you a list of the financial statements to submit in order to be approved for merchant status.

4. When do you want to complete the switch?

Depending on your implementation and the resources you can devote to it, you can expect the process to take from one to four months (if you’re not switching gateways, the process can take less than a day). Develop a time frame for terminating your existing processor relationship. To ensure payment continuity during the
process, it’s prudent to keep the existing and the new platform running in parallel for some time. You may want to continue this for 180 days after the switch to make certain any remaining transaction issues are resolved. Once you terminate your existing contract, retain your old records in case of an audit.

5. What should you
do first?

One of the biggest hurdles in making the payment platform migration is simply making it a priority. An SVB Global Treasury and Payments Advisor can help you identify the resources you’ll need to get the job done. Use the
checklist below to outline a project plan and run it by key stakeholders to get buy-in on a start date.

Checklist: Create a plan for
your payments platform migration

Mapping out your transition to a new payments platform will help the process run smoothly. Each task and check-in along the way will help you migrate on time and without business disruption.

Use this checklist to help you get started on your project plan.

Identify, engage
and inform key stakeholders.
Your successful migration requires support and involvement from key stakeholders. Determine who from executive leadership and your peer community needs to be in the know. Educate them about the payoff of the migration, the
steps being taken to minimize transition impact and the timeline. Focus on payback that aligns with company goals and their priorities. Provide routine updates so the project remains a priority.

Assemble the right
project team.
It’s important to involve your finance department leadership, such as your CFO or VP of Finance, so that the new platform’s reporting tools are set up to meet their needs from the start. On the IT side, assign an experienced developer. Relying on someone who
is just learning how to work with the relevant
APIs and sandboxes will likely slow down the process. Consider involving training, marketing, legal and risk management as appropriate.

Allocate the
appropriate hours and budget.
Before the project kicks off, assign the necessary team hours and dollars to it. Making sure you have dedicated staff who can focus on the migration is a key factor in sticking to your timeline.

Develop a timeline. Set a schedule that identifies milestones for each phase from the upfront business analysis to gathering requirements, coding, setting up the system, testing and certification, and launch. Understand your customers’ peak and off-peak buying patterns so you go live when volumes are
the lowest, minimizing any potential payment flow disruption. Schedule regular update meetings with task owners to check the timeline and resolve issues.

Review your
business continuity plan.
There is always a chance for some kind of disruption when new systems are in place and employees are learning how to use them. A contingency plan will help build internal support for this migration too. If you’re currently accepting card payments,
review the existing contingency plan to ensure it is sufficient. If you’re new to card acceptance, devise a plan for potential glitches, such as terminal malfunctions and fraud.

Plan to test
throughout the process
. As with any technology implementation, testing is critical to a seamless migration. Be sure to test as you go through the process. Don’t skimp on the amount of time and resources needed to guarantee comprehensive testing, especially as you prepare
to go live

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The views expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not reflect the views of SVB Financial Group, or Silicon Valley Bank, or any of its affiliates. This material, including without limitation the statistical information herein, is provided for informational purposes only. The material is based in part upon information from third-party sources that we believe to be reliable, but which has not been independently verified by us and, as such, we do not represent that the information is accurate or complete. You should obtain relevant and specific professional advice before making any investment or other decision. Silicon Valley Bank is not responsible for any cost, claim or loss associated with your use of this material.

About the Author

Scott Middleton is a product advisor with Silicon Valley Bank, and is responsible for designing comprehensive merchant services solutions for clients around the U.S. In this role, he identifies ways for clients to expand their global sales footprint, improve efficiencies, reduce costs and potential charge backs, and mitigate fraud.

Scott’s extensive experience began over 20 years ago at Bank of America Merchant Services prior to joining Silicon Valley Bank in 2010. Additionally, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Law & Society from UC Santa Barbara.

Silicon Valley Bank is registered in England and Wales at Alphabeta, 14-18 Finsbury Square, London EC2A 1BR, UK under No. FC029579. Silicon Valley Bank is authorised and regulated by the California Department of Business Oversight and the United States Federal Reserve Bank; authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority with number 577295; and subject to regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority and limited regulation by the Prudential Regulation Authority. Details about the extent of our regulation by the Prudential Regulation Authority are available from us on request. Silicon Valley Bank is a subsidiary of SVB Financial Group, a Delaware corporation and is an affiliate of SVB Financial Group UK Limited. SVB Financial Group UK Ltd is registered in England and Wales at Alphabeta, 14-18 Finsbury Square, London EC2A 1BR, UK under No. 5572575 and is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, with reference number 446159. SVB Financial Group and its subsidiary Silicon Valley Bank are members of the Federal Reserve System and Silicon Valley Bank is a member of the FDIC.